I'm creating some scenarios for the North Wales route. I thought it would be a nice idea to do the following - make an AI "template" scenario I can use as a base for half a dozen or more player scenarios, so I do the AI once, then I can make a number of different scenarios for the player. The template scenario is made using the current Network Rail working timetable (using about a 2.5 hour slice), so the trains seen are what you would see if you were actually on the route at that time of day. I'm having a problem outside Chester station though. It seems that any AI express passenger train waiting at the station blocks the approaches into Chester. For example, the Euston to Chester service that stops in Chester for a while, then leaves in the other direction. While it's stopped it seems to cause all the signals approaching Chester from the east to be set at danger, even though it might not be moving for another 15 minutes. This stops both other AI trains and the player train entering. Playing with the priorites just moves the problem, a bit like pushing down a bubble in wallpaper. Is there any solution to this? I suspect the AI is trying to path the train even though it won't move for a while, and because it got there first the whole station is blocked until it leaves. Can a script be written to make the train go 'inactive' during its dwell time in the station (essentially become static scenery)? Or am I just barking up the wrong tree, and will have to concede I'll have to do custom AI for every single scenario (e.g. one solution for a single scenario would be to see what trains are stopped in the station when the player passes, and add them as a static consist instead, and have the only moving AI trains be the ones that players are going to definitely be affecting the player train - but this involves a lot of extra work compared to making a base scenario and cloning it half a dozen times - especially if you're trying to base the AI off the real Working Timetable).
I think your issue may be not what you expect... When working on the SOUTH Wales Mainline I found a number of signals where the destination markers on the track were too long, so extending beyond protecting signals. Given that AI always stops at the end of any given track destinations this means that any consist sent to that destination will then foul the next block, and set any covering signals to danger. So I would advise looking at the markers on the track itself and make sure that any you want AI to inhabit don't extend beyond covering signals. I have yet to find a way to reduce the destination markers but haven't looked since the track edit issue of the editor which caused track to vanish!
As an example, if you go onto the SWML route and look at Stormy down loop. The down destination marker extends ten feet beyond the covering signal so any train running on the mainline is forced to stop when an AI is in the loop siding
